Three years ago, Karen Ennis woke up
suddenly in the middle of the night. Something was telling her to make a change. To
surrender herself to a higher cause.

The owner of the Riverfront Barbershop
and Salon in Wrightsville saw her clients and
other women in the community placing the
needs of their families before themselves. The
economy was strained and Ennis saw mothers
taking on bigger loads.

"Moms have the stress of everything,"
Ennis said.

Ennis wanted to help.

She proposed the idea of making her cosmology services "pay what you can" to her
husband, Michael. They ultimately decided it
wasn't the right time, but the idea had planted
itself firmly in Ennis' mind.

This fall, she noticed a change brewing in
her client base.

Willie Foster, of York Township, right, approves of Karen Ennis' new business model of pay what you can at Riverfront Barbershop & Salon in Wrightsville Tuesday Feb. 12, 2013. YORK DAILY RECORD/SUNDAY NEWS - PAUL KUEHNEL (Paul Kuehnel)

Women were canceling appointments.
These were not new clients that Ennis didn't know very well, but "ladies that don't cancel,"
she said.

A client that Ennis had been seeing for 12
years called to tell her she could no longer
afford her services.

The time for change had come, Ennis
thought.

On Feb. 12, Ennis opened her salon with a
new business model. Without cutting services
or changing the products she uses, Ennis no
longer posted prices. Women paid what they
could afford.

Shannon Fleming, a client on Ennis',
found the change shocking, but not surprising.

"I'd never heard of that before," Fleming
said. "But it didn't surprise me for her. Karen
is brave and she has a big heart. She thinks
outside the box."

"Women come to me to relax, indulge a
little and feel better about themselves," Ennis
said. "Everybody is hurting and I hear the
needs of women. Salon services can cost a lot
and it's a concern for them."

Ennis is offering the new payment system
to clients from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays
through Fridays and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays. Clients must call ahead to make an appointment. And there is a firm cancellation
policy. If an appointment is canceled -
unless in the case of an emergency - there
will not be the opportunity to reschedule.

Her services are not free, but Ennis is confident that by opening her payment system, it
will even out.

"One hand feeds the other," Ennis said.
"What one woman pays will cover the cost of
another person to come in. I believe the
women will have a sense of what's fair."

Fleming is used to paying
Ennis' old prices for her hair
care and will continue those
same payments for now.

"I almost want to pay
more," Fleming said.

But Ennis is aware that
not everyone will feel that
way.

She could be taken advantage of by clients or disliked
by other salon owners in the
area.

"I'm not trying to undercut
other salons," Ennis said.
"But I can't be worried what
the world thinks. I could lose
my shirt, but I've gained the
world."

All appointments at Ennis'
salon are single bookings.
She opens her entire salon
for one client at a time to give
them her full attention and
allow them to use the time as
they wish, she said. This includes letting women bring a
friend, mother or kids, if they
wish.

Ennis' husband, Michael,
runs a barbershop adjoining
her salon on the first floor of
their home facing the Susquehanna River in Wrightsville,
and supports her decision to
change her business model.

Although Ennis only
opened the location about a
year ago, there has been a
salon on the property for decades.

"There's a great history
here," Ennis said.

To make the place their
own, the Ennis's refinished
the long leaf pine floors original to the house, which was
built in the 1850s, according
to the deed. They removed
layers of wallpaper and
added a soothing olive paint
and inviting living room furniture to create a calming atmosphere.

After coming to Ennis'
salon for over a year, Connie
Anderson of East Prospect
considers their relationship
more than that of cosmologist
and client.

"We've become friends,"
Anderson said. "You can tell
her anything and know it
won't go beyond the door."

Amanda Thomas - "I do it myself. I am tired of
overpaying for a haircut when it's barely noticeable."

Jackie Donagher - "...I feel like people need to
keep in mind what we spend as hairstylists each year
on continuing education, tools, supplies, and high
quality color and hair products that we use. It is defi´
nitely not cheap."

Selena Maree Sparks - "I don't typically put a
limit on finding a great stylist that keeps current on
trend, education and skill. That being said, I normally
pay inbetween $150-$200 for cut, color and style."